As Migration Surges, Italy Weighs Barring Some Rescue Boats

According to data from the Italian Interior Ministry, as of Wednesday of last week, 76,873 migrants had landed on Italian shores since the start of the year.

It has been reported that the government has given its ambassador to the EU, Maurizio Massari, a mandate to raise the issue formally with the European commission to seek permission for a drastic revision of EU asylum procedures, the report says.

Rome's EU ambassador, Maurizio Massari, met EU Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos and told him that "the situation we are facing is serious and Europe can not turn its back", an Italian government source said.

Between Sunday and Wednesday this week, rescuers in the Mediterranean picked up 10,850 migrants from 74 packed dinghies and flimsy wooden boats before heading for Italian ports to drop them off. She said more focus was needed on stopping traffickers in Africa and getting the thousands of people making the journey from Niger to Libya to stay.

Following the migrant shipwrecks in April 2015 off the coast of Libya, the EU began a military operation known as European Union Naval Force Mediterranean (EUNAVFOR Med), also called Operation Sophia.

The record for migrants rescued on a single day stands at 7,000, plucked from their unseaworthy vessels on 29 August 2016.

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In a separate report, Deutsche Welle (DW), Germany's worldwide broadcaster, noted that Italy's ruling, centre-left Democratic party has come under pressure over the migrant issue.

Almost 77,000 migrants have landed in Italy since January, up 15 percent on the same period in 2016. And even the maverick radical Five Star Movement is moving to a more anti-immigrant position, calling for a halt to any new migrants being lodged in Rome.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday that "we will help Italy" with the asylum-seeker crisis.

Avramopoulos responded via Twitter that he had discussed with the Italian envoy "our support after increasing numbers of arrivals in Italy". The bloc's 28 national leaders also agreed last week that "front line" countries Italy and Greece should receive more help with the arrivals.

"Now is the moment to deliver, and we will hold them to this", the commissioner said.

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